My "Holy Grail" Two very rare oldschool Soundstream MC-500 Amps cracked open, hooked up & played

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An old friend of mine called me up one day and said he had 2 Soundstream MC500's for sale and would give me a good deal on one. Of course i said yes and to bring them by. Back in 1989, i JUST graduated High School, my parents moved away and i didn't have but a wooden nickel to my name. I couldn't even come close to something of this caliber at that time. Anyway, when he told me he really needed the money i figured it was my duty to make him an offer he couldn't refuse and try to get both of them. . I couldn't help it, as soon as i saw them i knew i had to at least try. He took my offer and they are both mine. They have been sitting on the shelf ever since. My shop got busy and I sort of forgot I had them. Well here they are. Lets hook them up for the first time (since I got them) and see how they sound. Thanks for watching if you did!
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[@meade916]

What is your "Holy Grail" amp?

[@cesarcalero687]

Have a small collection of old fosgates A/D/S and ppi art amps

[@thenotoriousrvh6091]

Wish I could find some I had but sold them and regretted it ever since, OG 1995ish MMATS 2025x & 2050x in white.

[@speedwayaudio3]

US Amps

[@chrisyoung2242]

HIFONICS SERIES 7 COLOSSUS

[@bobbyackerson4125]

Phoenix Gold MS1000

[@beanpie7191]

Nice pick up! These take me back. Thanks for the vid.

[@CandBLawnCare]

I had the limited edition chrome plated soundstream continuum back in the day. It was a 5 channel running high end and an Orion XTR 15. Still have some old school soundstream 10’s. Love my old soundstream.

[@steveschwartz9771]

Owned almost all of the Soundstream VGA Van Gogh series amps, loved them! VGA1600.2, VGA 500.4, 320.4, 400.2, 800.2, 800.5, Some of the truly amazing handbuilt units from Cali - just amazingly powerful (huge) and clean!

[@6768scat]

Those SoundStream Amp and the A/D/S Power Plates where true audiophile quality amps . I wish stuff like that was still made today and sounded as good as they did , they were pure CLASS-A !!!!!

[@mk3driftmotion]

I grew up in Fullerton, and started my first little car audio install company in 1993. We installed several Soundstream amplifiers and they sounded super clean. I didn't know they were made in Fullerton back then! Early 90's it was all about Soundstream, Orion, Phoenix Gold, MTX, Rockford Fosgate, etc... Made in USA actually meant something, they are just not the same anymore. I remember a few years later I took a job working as an installer at The Good Guys, and JL audio was the hot setup in the late 90's, their subs sounded so clean.

[@avan5352]

Loved Soundstream back in the day.

[@highgoals4204]

Holy Grail for sure! Them guts are amazing

[@scottlincoln6286]

Soundstream was the shit back in the 90's along with the eclipse deck. Great stuff Steve 👍

[@jonesaleroy]

All the classics songs from highschool. Hell yeah brother.

[@michaelrichardson5505]

Maaaan thats a classic forsure! The OG SOUNDSTREAM WIT TEH BIG FINS !!! Im from 916 Sac. Born & raised. it was a point of pride that soundstream was rite down the road in Folsom California. These amps were so Bulletproof you could replace the fuse with a bolt and use the speaker wires to weld with

[@denvermatt]

1993 in high school I had a 15" sub from an electric bass guitar cabinet in a home made box (no specs) connected to an amp from the flea market with 200w. I was working at taco bell in the drive thru, I thought I was the man! lol. Soundstream was amazing but for me I always wanted a beautiful Precision Power man those were cool amps in 1995. I loved going to the audio shop and bothering the store manager with every question on the planet. He knew I could never afford to buy anything but still took the time answering all my questions. 30yrs later and I'm teaching my 14yr daughter how to build a new box this weekend :)

[@wal]

Love these and back then not many amps had insert terminals for speakers, power, etc so wiring these up was really clean. Another thing to note is how HUGE the fins are on these amps...can't really tell via video have to see them in person. I'm glad you found these and enjoy them, that's what it's all about! Also, thanks for the shout out!!

[@cinos78579]

I had a buddy that had a 5 channel Soundstream that looked like that. Hooked up to 2 SPL 12s in a 80 Cutlass. Way back in the day. That system was amazing.

[@tjr4286]

I had one I used in my 98 Taurus SHO it woke that car up super clean wattage.

[@exzodius_2578]

sounds awesome even in the video can only imagine in person

[@gregkrueger331]

Man i got a whole soundstream setup way back in 97-98ish. A friend of mine’s family owned a pawnshop and i got some big ass SS 12” subs and a couple SS amps for $300 bones on the homie hookup. I wish I still had all the equipment Ive had over the years.

[@621ELECTRONICS]

These old amps just look like they mean business. I still love the old stuff and would love to see an old school build with these.

[@sakostwwy1903]

There is just something about that old school sound. So clean and controlled. Awesome amps.

[@jhinton088]

Old school build for sure. You gotta do it.

[@MakingItHappenMWC]

I recall that brand. I usually ran Fosgate or Precision Power amps. I had buddies that ran Orion amps all the time. It's cool to see these old brands.

[@WalkersLawn]

About the caps inside the amps. Nichicon is one of the most prestigious capacitor manufacturers on the market. The company's components are characterized by excellent parameters and are popular - especially among manufacturers of electronic equipment focusing on the quality and durability of their devices. In recent decades, however, electronic circuits have become more widespread in new fields (e.g., automotive) and, at the same time, the requirements for their energy efficiency and durability have increased. This is the result of a constant technological development - especially in the field of capacitors. On the one hand, they remain a key component of many circuits (such as power supplies or converters), and on the other: for years they have been considered the most failure-prone passive components. Today the TME catalogue is full of compact elements with extended service life and excellent characteristics. What's more, there are completely new technological solutions on the market that meet the high requirements of modern electronics. Nichicon capacitors are at the forefront of development - and you can always find the brand's latest solutions at TME

[@nickmrt2670]

Unfortunately the capacitors in these amps are almost impossible to find

[@UD3ADSUCKA]

He poked the leads straight through the wire 😂😂😂 I love it

[@CraigMorris-e3u]

In 1995 I used two MC 245 going through two eqt's going into Mb quarts Rockford fosgate 8 inch subwoofers in the small Alpine center channel amp for the front. I walked around the show it was a big sanctioned show in Denver Colorado Big show at the lowrider festival tell me some incredible systems there big ones. I did not share my score sheet with anybody I was one of the only few people at the show that got perfect zero on the equalization. So another long story short 0 I got first place 0 to 500 watt consumer.. biggest trophy and I think all this guy's got our picture in Lowrider magazine to commemorate the show. I think I did like 132 or 1:33 db . Sometimes you don't realize what you got until after it's gone.

[@ThatsNotFunnyThatsSick]

A Soundstream D200II, and three Class A 50s driving two Soundstream SS10s, a/d/s 320is components, and a pair of MB Quart 4" "plates" I had modify to work as rear fill. That was 1991.

[@stevecho8956]

I had a pull out Sound Stream tape player with Alpine 4 channel, Audio Control 2Xs and D200 powering 2 12 inch MM Godfathers seat pushed all the way up Nissan hard body standard cab PU back in the early 90's. Great memories..

[@MrDopey32]

Anything old school RF, alpine, and of course orion from the late 80's early 90's😊 I really miss those days❤ I really didn't know much about anything else back then. Lol I miss the 2 pyramid see thru clear 12's I had in my room (94'). Those things sounded awesomein my bedroom😂😂

[@wheelieking71]

I power my shop system with my beloved MC500. It powers an anchient pair of Peavey "Black Widow" PA monitors. It plays at least 10hrs/day, almost every day. And has for many years. Sounds fantastic. I have three holy-grail amps. The MC500, Adcom 4702, and Audison HR100.

[@michaelback6815]

I still have my Soundstream 1002. Chrome model. Sitting in my closet. Had it for about 20 years

[@eurekaakerue4649]

☝️😎💯 like wise my A6.0 new still in plastic wrap In sealed unopened boxes 📦 guess that makes me a collector‼️ 3 other SS AMPS

[@meade916]

@@eurekaakerue4649 I had a Class A 6.0 but it got stolen years ago....sucks.

[@thenotoriousrvh6091]

Probably why old school amps seem to sound cleaner, No processing. Wish amp manufactures would leave "sound signatures and processing" out of amps and focus on higher grade amplifying components.

[@gen-X-trader]

There are a couple but they are very expensive. The audison thesis amps are built with extremely high quality components but you pay dearly for them. Sound absolutely fantastic though. Definitely on the same level as these or what Mcintosh was making 20 years ago

[@thenotoriousrvh6091]

@@gen-X-trader Stereo Integrity are straight amps. They're a little more budget friendly but still by no means "cheap".

[@Sneakdisscommentbelow]

Old 200 watt 15s and a 400 watt amp sound louder than a set of 3" coil subs on a thousand on each with a new amp.

[@gen-X-trader]

@@Sneakdisscommentbelow there's a reason for that. Those old subs were like 90 DB at one watt one meter. Some of these new subs are like 84. It takes three times the power to get the same SPL even if, and some of the cases the new subs are capable of out more output, they require a lot more power to get there

[@Sneakdisscommentbelow]

@@gen-X-trader sounds almost like a communist China move to make us buy batteries and alternators 🤣

[@jessicadawn5815]

I has one back in the day. They were a beast of an amp!

[@BassheadGTP]

When i see Nichicon caps in anything i get a warm fuzzy.

[@mrbiggz8526]

That’s why I prefer oldskool amps still cause they clean , I have my alpine v12 amps still and never get rid of them .

[@poppynokc1977]

Them V12 Amps are spectacular. I have a few of them.

[@92coupelx]

Killer! My buddy had a soundstream amp pushing 3 12w6's just under 2 ohms I believe, it was back in 95'-96' in the back of a new for the time ford probe. That thing hit! It wasn't one of these bad boys, but a younger brother product

[@jonesaleroy]

My favorite Amps. I had 2x reference 1000s and 2x 500s. Wish I meet parted with them. ❤ The channel man. You got me back in car audio after 20 years. Putting together an SQ team for IASCA. I got a system that's gonnaake Waves. Full studio and RTA setup running on a custom water cooled PC with full XLR in and out . Custom hifi DAC for output and inputs. Even thinking about water-cooling my front stage punch p8002.

[@fortyfukinseven]

Love the shout out to Big D Wiz. I know you are in contact, but its nice seeing my favorites talk to each other 😊

[@brandonjohnson7559]

Super cool, I wasn’t even a twinkle in my dads eye when these were built and they still look and sound phenomenal

[@danielhillwick5276]

Before I did my big old school PPI install in 96-97 I ran 4 soundstream MC500s in custom 1986 F250 Super Cab 2 of them were pushing 4 CV Stroker 15 the other 2 ran 2 M&M 8" mid base, 4 M&M 6" mids, and 4 Orion Super Tweeters in each door. Super Fucking Loud and clean 😊 those were the best days of my youth.... Talk about Hair Tricks! I had all the chick's in the Hood wanting to RIDE!

[@cesarcalero687]

Man, I love the content you put out but I got to be honest this old school amp content is freaking bad ass.

[@thenotoriousrvh6091]

An MC500 on 2 M&M Godfather 18's basically hooked me into car audio.

[@neilerasmus5700]

mine is the sony xplod xm-d1000p5 monoblock. still have 1 brand new in the box. and for the subs i recently found which i couldnt believe my eyes when i found them is the sony xplod xs-l1290p5 found brand new. i just loved them when i was still in school grade 5, im 32 now and finally found something ive always wanted. was like a dream come true for me. for me they look amazing

[@orlandot3944]

Niiiice... They remind me of the old school ADS amps from the layout.

[@Chickenlegs836]

MEADE BROTHER!!These Old school amps were popular back in our younger years WOW! U remember GODFATHER SUBS?? Same era roughly. I had 2 18s & a kenwood amp hooked up to them BOOM BABY BOOM!! EXOTIC EXPRESSIONS our car club name!! Thanks 🙏 for sharing Brother 👍😉. Blessings 🙏🌸🌺🌼

[@demigodq6083]

My dream amp was the Orion HCCA and the long purple US Amp

[@JayP7.62]

I remember that awesome amp. One of my local shops had one on display for years and he wouldn't sell it. I believe it was in 1998 when I was buying my soundstream 702 and little wonder that I talked to him about it. He said he wouldn't sell it because he thought it would be worth more money in the future. He said, "this amp is going to be a rare collectable". He was all about collecting car audio. About 5 years later the shop closed down. I wonder what he did with that amp and everything else he had. He also had a pair of 15" and a pair of 18" cerwin vega strokers. He was a car audio hoarder lol.

[@timothyanderson1132]

Those are sweet I can’t believe how far amps have come from back then😮Steve I got my dd1 all the way in Knoxville Tennessee in 2 days I wish other companies shipped that fast

[@egregiousblunder5395]

This is when Soundstream was unbeatable. I still have all my OG 90's Soundstream amps and a pair of OG SPL 12's and SPL 170's along with my OG Nakamichi headunit. After Soundstream started their decline, I jumped aboard with Planet Audio.

[@wrenchesandcars5161]

They sound amazing

[@universalhead]

That’s cool , I saw Soundstream and that signature blue caught my eye. I have a mint Soundstream Reference200 that I took out from underneath the dash of a higher end sport boat of all places. Had been under there perfect since the 80’s. Like you say back in the day I could never afford them. I remember looking at them at the one stereo shop that carried Soundstream. It was rare to see in my small town , Or anywhere. I had to go get it out of storage and look at it. Man are they ever well made amplifiers, and hand crafted in USA. 🇺🇸 it’s a little jewel 💎

[@ZoeyR86]

I have 1 they are 7.5A factory. I have the Orginal box and paperwork as well. I will be up north in September. I will drop it off at the shop

[@meade916]

ahhh shit good lookin out on that.

[@cueball981]

I used to own an MC-245 and I still own a D200II, D100II, and 3 D60II Soundstream amps. I haven't had the MC-245 for quite some time, but man, I loved that amp back in the day! When I was running one of my systems with the MC-245, I had no idea that they also made an MC-300 and MC-500. I have my DII series packed away in my closet waiting for a cap replacement someday soon, hopefully!

[@saschacubexyz]

Aaaaah....these oldschool amps a great, too 😉👍🆙️

[@RJSDZNS]

I'm getting ready to do a full CT Sounds build. I'm glad you're endorsing them.

[@markphilpot8734]

Can’t go wrong with Soundstream. Best amps ever made. JL comes close, but never heard better. You may not agree, but you can’t please everyone so you got to please yourself. Cheers guy! Do I envy you!

[@scrapironfish]

Old school soundstream was my favorite. Had a reference 500 on 2 soundstream spl 12's wired to 1 ohm and they slammed.

[@Wolverines1]

These are my holy grail too. Acquired a minty one probably 15-18 years ago. It’s still in my current system. MC500 on 2 Kicker 12’s, MC300 on front stage of Kicker Resolution 6.5’s and ND25a soft dome tweets and a D100II on rear kicker 6.5 coax. Eclipse head and an Audiocontrol 4.1. Alpine active x-over.

[@erichfischer8064]

"Touch too much"....... OG call right there! Amps sound clean as hell

[@jimmyramirez8844]

This is a good video seeing the old school amps nothing like it bre it’s back memories growing up🔥🔥🔥

[@jonas2431]

That's beautiful

[@92coupelx]

I always wanted one of the old rockford power amps with the chrome shroud with the fan. Don't know where those rank today, but they were what everyone wanted back in the early 90's.

[@meade916]

I have a 650 and a 300 :)

[@CajunReaper95]

Hit us with AC/DC! Gotta love my grandfather for blessing me with decent music knowledge from when he was growing up, ac/dc, Led Zeppelin, list goes on, my grandmother was more country but she listened to Lynyrd Skynyrd along with Guns N’ Roses, my mom was more so Metallica, then linkin park, some country and more metal and older rock, my aunt was more edm, techno etc then I grew up with all of it being surrounded by my family plus having the internet at some point helped with music genres discovery like dubstep and other forms of edm!

[@Cheese22911]

It was great to hear something other than rap. Seems like that's all anybody listens to now. I still dig some good old school hip hop, though.

[@speedwayaudio3]

As always a class act.

[@ronaldhill7180]

My favorite amp design of all time.

[@sneakersnsupercars]

I always wanted a pair of these back in the day for my first serious SQ build but being in the UK they were so hard to get and so expensive too. Went with Genesis dual monos in the end with the newly released (back then) Mission Components. Great times!

[@rc-t3k]

Cleanest sounding power amplifiers in the 90s

[@cm1752]

@meade916 Hell yeah man, old school Soundstreaem! Nice to see you visited the Registry too.👍

[@shaneking7419]

I’m so old school that I have 4 unopened RF Power 1000c amps😂. For years I’ve said I was going to another build, I’m in my 50s now so maybe my grandson will once old enough 😁

[@acidburn831]

Love the blue whale. Had 1 on these and 2 D100's and 2 D50's. Loved that system.

[@joelowens5211]

Remember the Soundstream Tarantula amp? I always thought that was cool but could not afford it. Also the Pheonix gold cyclone sub.

[@bodylanguageconsultant]

I still have an old school reference 604 I bought from Elk Grove Auto Sound. Between them and Paradym those were the places to pick up these amps.

[@MastaT_150]

I still run my Soundstream Rubicon 702’s I’ve had since the early 2000’s. They’ve been bullet proof so they have just moved from vehicle to vehicle over the years.

[@gregorkluth2857]

Can confirm. I have a rubicon 405 that I got last year, still in sealed Box. Might not be very powerful, but definitely the best sounding car amp I ever listened to

[@craigallen6706]

I had a MC300 and a D200II. The worst thing I did was sell them. I will buy both of these from you now.

[@nojnoj3069]

You have personally changed the way we listen.

[@deeg4n000]

Both Two $hort and these amp are Gettin IT! These are class AB yes? And the models before the reference series came out?

[@xalint1]

Wow I am the same way dreamed of having SoundStream amps. If I recall the sound is nice and clean.

[@csj9619]

Fantastic acquisition of your holy grail amplifiers. I'm happy for you. I've been a big Soundstream fan since the Reference series amps were released, but they were out of reach for me as a broke kid.

[@ChrisPBacon198]

I Used To Own That Amplifier Back in The Day Wow its Awesome To See This Model Again

[@jhershy1381]

Always wondered what to get a man that has everything. ❤🎉

[@mcdlb181]

I grew up in Folsom and a couple friends worked there, and what worked out for me was one of the guys wasn’t interested in high end audio so I was first in line for items he would win get as a gift etc. my stereo was worth more than the car itself lol

[@DTW-bx2vy]

The Soundstream Reference series class A/B amplifiers had a very high damping factor of 3000 & the sound quality is still amazing today.

[@sickjohnson]

The Rockford Fosgate T15K was pretty sick Steve!

[@joshuajames1067]

I got a reference 6.0 from 94 still in the box with paperwork and birth sheet it's a 1/4 ohm stable hand made in folsom California yea the soundstream stuff that was American made was nice stuff

[@robertstembridgejr7532]

When Sound Stream was good!

[@austinmoore9854]

Nice man love this

[@drbooming]

amazing amp 🔊

[@fillo1971]

Questo si ché un bel vedere, mamma mia quanto ne ho installati. Suono spettacolare, vecchia scuola e componenti interni degni di essere chiamati così

[@firestick4394]

A old school build with some Cerwin Vega Strokers would be epic!!!

[@jjewellz87]

You need to find the car you had or wanted back then and do an old school sq build if you can find speakers from that era too. Don't forget to speckled paint some of the build as well! 🤪

[@jrrockett]

Siiiiik! Them amps and Two Reference 12s in a SoundStream Reference Bandpass Box, Dope!

[@BIGGIEDEVIL]

Thanks for sharing i love old school amps there just built to last

[@victorlambertt4662]

Soundstream was a very good amps back in the days the did a 1.4 oms with no problems

[@Spooln4]

I still have my Dad’s Davinci and Tarantula. I’d love to build an SQ car with these in his honor one day.

[@MichaelandMaryH]

They are two very sweet very rare amps. Your a lucky man

[@ZZ-we7vt]

Man before your content was available to us the old trick on the Soundstream was to turn the frequency all the way up volume down low enough to hear the sound and slowly turn that frequency down and you could hear the bass get deeper/louder and that was ticket to ride around and let it bump!!!!

[@meade916]

in other words totally wrong. LOL! Before my content, people that used amps like this that actually cared would use an O-scope. Never just guess your gains or use the ear-o-meter unless you really just don't care about the quality.

[@paidnfull5278]

Amp guts look fantastic 💯

[@flashanddancedj]

My holy grail was the Profile California 2400. For being such a moderate priced amp I couldn’t afford it till I got my second job and man could that thing pound… It was clean as well… If you can find one I would love to see it on the dyno….

[@veronicamartin295]

Its like oldschool hotrodding! Love it!

[@STIDanny]

Have you thought of doing your dream set up from back in the day using time correct components like these amps?

[@STIDanny]

Nvm just finished the video that’s what u said in the last part beautiful amps tho!

[@meade916]

not sure where I would even get those. I have some SS5.1's but they are old, crusty and don't have soft parts anymore. I also have some old SS10" subs. I could totally do it if I could get the speakers fixed. Doubtful with these.

[@jeffreyabercrombie]

I had a ref300 late 90’s early 2000, still buying soundstream subs but not amps switched to Rockford

[@cesarcalero687]

Punch amps. 45,75,150 that’s my era. My cousin and his boys rocked these like nobody’s business.

[@bobbycakes]

Soundstream was the best ! i had a 4 channel back in '91. it powered 14 speakers all my mids & highs! i had an Autotek for my 4 -12" subs . in a mazda extended cab. DEAFDOG ! lost 4 windshields! is there anything comparable in todays market?

[@tedtan6449]

Many of the parts manufacturers, have since ceased operation. If you really want to hear how two amps sound, do an A/B test in a home audio setting. Use very capable speakers. We used to do this using a Krell amplification, sonus Faber amator speakers. You'd be surprised where some amplifiers fail, it's the depth of stage, and extension with percussion instruments.